364 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



When bee-men send their honey to 

 commission merchants on consignment, 

 they help to lower the market. As an ex- 

 ample: a merchant who has no trade for 

 honey is anxious to sell it an^ render 

 sales, and does not uphold the market, 

 while firms, like ours, who buy are com- 

 pelled to maintain prices. If the com- 

 mission merchant had to buy his honey 

 instead of having a consignment, he 

 would be interested in holding vip the 

 price; therefore, we advocate the discon- 

 tinuance of consignments, except to 

 firms in the honey line who have an es- 

 tablished outlet. 



Recently I was in St. Paul and Milwau 

 kee, and many firms had consignments 

 of comb honey, most of which was leak- 

 ing; and, as they do not know how to 

 handle it, and are not selling it, eventu- 

 ally we will buy large quantities of it as 

 granulated comb honey, and this we usu- 

 ally buy from 5 to 7 cents per pouml. If 

 that comb honey A'asours, we would take 

 the leaking frames out of the cases, put 

 it in proper shape, and sustain the market 

 at present prices. I do not expect to 

 change the present order of affairs, but il 

 is time that somebody entered a pruioi. 

 The only kind of honey to ship is il.a: 

 made with separators. 



I was the first one to advocate the sul)- 

 ject of grading, and I have seen gu .li 

 improvements in this direction in li.r 

 past few yea-s, bu' we are not as neai- 

 perfection as we should be in that direc- 

 tion. There should be a uniform pack- 

 age and it should be the 24-II). section 

 case, single tier, with strips in the bottom 

 and these strips nailed. 



The trade buys honey according to 

 color and not flavor. I have often stated 

 that if you would give me white comb, 

 it can have vinegar in, and the trade will 

 buy it. I know that dark comb honey is 

 often the best flavored, but honey sells 

 only on cohr. Of course, the sections 

 should be well filled, clean and neat, for 

 the neater the package, the more catchy 

 for the eye. 



A few seasons ago, we received large 

 quantities of honey-dew; and at that time 

 were not posted as to what it was, and it 

 injured our trade considerably. Today 

 we w'ould not sell honey-dew for anyone; 

 and, in ni}' opinion, it is as unfair to put 

 honey-dew on the market for honey, as 

 to put up glucose with the label "Honey." 



Every bee-keeper should have his name 

 on the crate; never put on his address, 

 because some trade is partial to some lo- 

 calities. A customer might say: "Sell us 

 white clover from Wiscon.sin," and yet, 

 when we give him white alfalfa from Col- 

 orado he doesn't know the difference. 

 Or if we give him white basswood from 

 Michigan, it meets his approval; there- 

 fore, leave your address off the crate; but 

 always put on your name. The gross, tare 

 and net should be on the case. In ship- 

 ping comb honey to market in less than 

 carloads, cases should be crated, handles 



CK.\TE FOR SHIPPING C.\SES OF COMB 

 HONEY. 



on the crate, and straw on the bottom of 

 the crate, and have a sign, "Handle with 

 care." Then it is much easier tore-ship 

 honey to the trade at distant points and 

 have it arrive in good order. When our 

 customers know that we can deliver hon- 

 ey without its leaking, they will^^be^^more 



